Testator William Jackson Dunaway executed his Last Will and Testament in February 2010, leaving his entire estate to his only sister, Virginia Pahl. Following Dunaway’s death, Appellee Stephen Pahl, Virginia’s son, petitioned to probate Dunaway’s will. Appellant Reva Viola Amerson, a longtime close friend of Dunaway, filed a caveat challenging the validity of the will and claiming that an earlier will executed by Dunaway in 1994 remained in effect. After a bench trial, the probate court granted Pahl’s petition, finding the 2010 will to be valid. Amerson appeals, maintaining that the 2010 will is invalid due to lack of testamentary capacity and undue influence. Finding no error, we affirm.
1. Because the power to make a will is a valuable right, a stringent standard must be met to set aside a will and thereby deprive the maker of that right. Holland v. Holland,
As we have noted, a testator possesses testamentary capacity so long as he
understands that he is executing a document that will dispose of his property after death, is capable of remembering the property that is subject to his disposition and the persons related to him by blood and affection, and has sufficient intellect to enable him to have a decided and rational desire as to the disposition of his property.
Prine v. Blanton,
2. Likewise, the evidence supported the probate court’s finding that Dunaway’s will was not the product of undue influence. “To invalidate a will, undue influence must amount to deception or coercion that destroys the testator’s free agency.” Prine,
Judgment affirmed.
